Let's Give A Damn

Audrey Assad is on the podcast today! She is not only a friend—she’s also a favorite artist of mine. Our whole family loves her, in fact. If you know me well, you know that I don’t listen to much music outside of classical music, broadway tunes, and some operas. I just don’t like all that much in pop music. Not into rock all that much. No oldies. But there are a few exceptions and Audrey is one of...

There’s been so much talk over these last few months and years about mental health—how we can help each other, what to look out for, etc. So, I thought it was high-time to bring back this old episode with my friend and fantastic human, Jamie Tworkowski. Jamie started TWLOHA—a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-in...

Scott Hamilton—yes, that Scott Hamilton—is on the podcast this week! In case you're one of the 18 people out there that doesn't know who Scott is, here are some important highlights. During his figure skating career, he won four consecutive US championships, four consecutive world championship, and he won an olympic gold medal in 1984.  On top of being a figure skating legend, Scott is a very very...

I opened this podcast by discussing the International Holocaust Remembrance Day that occurred over the weekend. During that short monologue, I shared a few quotes. I wanted to share those quotes here: “People growing up today must know what people were capable of in the past and we must work proactively to ensure that it is never repeated." —Chancellor Angela Merkel “To remember these men and wome...

Yesterday was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the United States. It's a day when we honor the life and legacy of one of America's most important leaders. King embodied humility, service, and boldness. My life is forever changed because of this man and I'm forever grateful. At the beginning of the episode, I read a few paragraphs from his famous Letter From Birmingham Jail. It's incredibly powerful....

Senzela Atmar was born in war-torn Kabul, Afghanistan. It's a miracle she and her family are still alive today. After surviving bombings, the death of a family member, and several years in a refugee camp, she and her family won a lottery and were brought to the United States. They began their lives in Nashville, TN. Senzela's story is going to blow your minds. Senzela started Relief Without Border...

Friends, I truly hope the first few days of 2019 have been amazing for you and yours! Claude Silver is on the podcast this week! She is the Chief Heart Officer at VaynerMedia—a company with 900 employees in NYC, LA, Chattanooga, and London. Claude has so much to teach us, y’all. She is wise well beyond her years. In our chat, she shares so much goodness on all things optimism, positivity, impact,...

This is the first episode of 2019! I can't wait to see what 2019 has in store for you and for me. Thanks for joining me on this damn journey. In this episode, I go on a rant/monologue for the first few minutes. I hope you'll find it helpful! I'd like to share two quotes from that rant: “Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.” —Marcus Aurelius “Our souls are not hungry...

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! Today's conversation involves two guests: Danny Bryant & Jason Adkins. Father Danny Bryant is my pastor and the parish priest at St. Mary of Bethany Parish in Nashville, TN. He’s a close friend a trusted spiritual advisor. Jason Adkins—a return guest to the podcast—is an urban farmer and professor at Trevecca University in Nashville, TN. We talk about the myth of s...

Many thanks to our friend Chelsea Clinton and the Clinton Global Initiative University for their partnership during this five-week series! Daquan Oliver is the Founder and CEO of WeThrive. WeThrive equips and empowers low-income youth to rise as entrepreneurial economic leaders. They know very well what so many of us know — if you give these kids the resources and opportunities, they will blow our...

For the next few weeks, I’ll be releasing a few podcast conversations in partnership with the Clinton Global Initiative. I attended their yearly event a few weeks ago and was able to record conversations with some of their alums. Each podcast will include a short introductory conversation I had with Chelsea Clinton. Today’s conversations is with the incredible Christine Schindler.  Christine is an...

For the next few weeks, I’ll be releasing a few podcast conversations in partnership with the Clinton Global Initiative. I attended their yearly event a few weeks ago and was able to record conversations with some of their alums. Each podcast will include a short introductory conversation I had with Chelsea Clinton. Today’s conversations is with the fantastic Arnav Dalmia.  5 years ago, Arnav grad...

For the next few weeks, I’ll be releasing a few podcast conversations in partnership with the Clinton Global Initiative University. I attended their yearly event a few weeks ago and was able to record conversations with some of their alums. Each podcast will include a short introductory conversation I had with Chelsea Clinton. The first of these conversations is with the incredible Sara Minkara. S...

A couple of weeks ago while I was in LA, Jessica Jackley invited me into her home for a chat. I’ve been waiting to do this chat since May. We were going to do it May but she and her family embarked on a trip around the world so we decided to wait until afterwards. We finally got around to do it and she did not disappoint! Jessica’s career has been and continues to be all about financial inclusion,...

Today, November 6, is midterm election’s day here in America. I love our global listeners but since most of our listeners are from America, I have something to say to you. No matter who you are or where you land politically, I hope you voted. It is our right and one we must not take for granted. Having said that, let me say this—I hope you are voting for equality and justice for all people in this...

Ceallaigh experienced a massive amount of relational and emotional pain early in her adult life. She shares more about that in our conversation so I won’t get into it here but I wanted to point out here that one of my favorite things about life is that beautiful things are oftentimes birthed out of pain and suffering. I’ve seen this happen over and over and again in my own life. I expect many of y...

We all want to change the world, right? If you’re like me, most days we can’t even figure out how to begin. Everything seems so overwhelming. Well, you’ll want to meet my guest today. I think she can help! Katie Patrick is an environmental engineer and software designer who lives in Silicon Valley. She’s freaking brilliant. In our conversation, we chat about parts of her 10-step process for saving...

“Having been raised in Mali, I’ve seen first-hand the opportunity to build equitable and authentic relationships with women farmer entrepreneurs in Africa. That’s why we founded Farafena to provide women farmers with an opportunity to share their food with the world. My dream is for Farafena to set an example of how families like yours, can engage with and get to know families like mine, our commu...

About 25% of our listeners are from outside the USA. Whether you live in the USA or not, you don’t need me to tell you that America is more divided than ever. We can chat and/or argue all day about why we are more divided than ever but we are not going to focus on those things today. What we are going to focus on is how can people that believe different things and value different things come toget...

You all know my guest and his work very well…whether you know it or not. Without a doubt, you’ve used the service he created many years ago. My guest today is Craig Newmark—the founder and creator of craigslist. Even though he hasn’t been in the daily business of craigslist for over 15 years, that is how he gained his fame and his wealth. What I love about Craig is how he has used his wealth. He i...

Tunde Wey, a Nigerian chef based in New Orleans, is a chef is who focuses on using food to address huge topics like racial inequality. Say what? Yup. He uses food to address systemic race issues in our country and he does a damn good job at it. With names like Saartj, 4:44, Blackness in America, and 1882, you can see immediately deduce that his pop-up restaurants are about much more than food. One...

A few months ago, I sat down in a swanky NYC hotel lobby for a cup of coffee with my guest today. We talked for an hour or two and I knew I had to have him on my podcast. Lew Blaustein is a wonderful human with a heart of gold. If you are a sports fan, however, you’re going to want to listen closely to out conversation.  Lew spent most of his career doing all things sports—brand management, advert...

My guest today is the weird and fantastic CJ Casciotta. CJ is my friend and a friend to so many. He is a writer and a media maker. He has spoken to communities like Lululemon, The Salvation Army, TEDx, and Charity:Water. Additionally, he has partnered with MGM Studios, The United Nations Foundation, and others like these on various types of projects.  CJ’s message is compelling to me because he sa...

Ian Rosenberger was born and raised in Pittsburg. His life and career took him all over the world experiencing new things all the time and meeting the most amazing people. One of those places he began to visit frequently was Haiti. As a result of the trip he made right after the 2010 earthquake which claimed the lives of over 250,000 people, he started Thread and Team Tassy (which is now known sim...

“Teachers, I believe, are the most responsible and important members of society because their professional efforts affect the fate of the earth.” Australian physician and author, Helen Caldicott, said this and I believe it. I have the utmost respect for teachers. They are under-payed, under-appreciated, and over-worked heroes that we should all take much better care of than we currently do. Teache...